The Chief of GRANT’s.
The first ‘Grant’ was Aulay Grant b 1150 – d 1225 Chief between 1174 to 1215. A full male ancestral list from Aulay back to Guthrum/Athelstan ‘Leader of the Summer Army’ King of East Anglia b 810 – d 889 in the time of King Alfred is available on the UK Society site http://www.clangrant.org/index.aspx?pid=23
The Chiefs of Grant passed traditionally from father to son for the majority of our lineage, or to a brother, nephew or Uncle, however in 1320 Andrew Stewart son of James Stewart 5th High Steward of Scotland married a daughter of Sir John Grant who had no son’s and adopted the surname Grant and he became Sir Andrew Grant 6th Chief of Grants.
For a full list of the Chiefs is best understood on the UK Society site http://www.clangrant.org/index.aspx?pid=19
The US Society site has an excellent photographic and summation record of the Chiefs of Grant from James the 18th Chief b 1616 to the current day. http://clangrant-us.org/test_site/?=page/clan-chiefs
In addition to the merging of the Stewart family into the current Grant Chieftan lineage, Sir Lewis Alexander Grant the 24th Chief inherited from his childless cousin James Ogilvie 4th Earl of Seafield estates & titles.
He added the Ogilvie surname to his own to become Sir Lewis Alexander Ogilvie-Grant Baronet, 5th Earl of Seafield, Viscount Reidhaven, Lord Ogilvie of Deskford and Cullen, Chief of the Clan Grant.
Ogilvie-Grant was held as the Chief’s name even after the Seafield Estates of the Ogilvie family were inherited by the ‘Dowager’ (widow) Caroline Stuart-Grant mother of Sir Ian Charles Ogilvie-Grant. Upon his death, the Grant titles were then inherited by his uncle. The Seafield estates and titles were re-united by Sir Ian’s cousin Sir Francis William Grant when as Chief of Clan Grant, the Countess & Lord Reidhaven died.
Franics William Ogilvie-Grant the 29th Chief, Immigrated to New Zealand before he inherited title from his cousin the Earl of Seafield and was only the Chief of Grant’s for a few months before his death. His death saw the recently reunited titles inherited by his 12 year old son Sir James Ogilvie-Grant the youngest Chief of Clan Grant in history.
He returned with his family to England where he served in World War I and was killed in action in Flanders in 1915. His titles and estates were held in trust for his young daughter who became Nina Caroline Grant, Countess of Seafield, until maturity.
In 1946 when his younger brother Sir Trevor Ogilvie-Grant became Chief of the Clan Grant he was the second generation in 1912 of the Grant Chief line to be born in Wellington, New Zealand.
Given the traditional Seafield estates of the Ogilvie part of the family were now inherited in the maternal and not paternal line of the family, in 1949 when Sir Trevor matriculated his arms in the Court of the Lord Lyon in Edinburgh, he changed his surname from Ogilvie-Grant to Grant of Grant Lord Strathspey as it remains today.